


Downpour

by spacedaydreamer



Series: The Terrorist [3]
Category: Zero Escape (Video Games), Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma - Fandom
Genre: And now for the neutral ending that's arguably worse than the bad ending, Descriptions of Blood, Gen, Hand Injuries, Mental Instability, Murder, Psychological Trauma, descriptions of gore/murder, dismemberment/mutilation of corpses, leg injuries, serial killings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-06
Updated: 2017-10-06
Packaged: 2019-01-09 22:52:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12285921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spacedaydreamer/pseuds/spacedaydreamer
Summary: Junpei had promised not to bleed anymore, but that didn't mean he was still without options. He needed stress relief, he needed a way to chase Them off- and while the method he found may not have been one that would make Akane happy, she would never have to know.





	Downpour

“Hey, lady. You’re lookin’ hot.”

Junpei’s eyes narrowed as he and Akane walked past the catcaller, clenching his fists but not doing anything. He knew better. He’d gotten better, he didn’t have to do anything. He could ignore this if Akane could.

“Hey, girl! I’m talkin’ to you- are you deaf or something?”

His hands shook in rage, but he felt Akane put a hand to his arm to steady him. If she was calm, then he could stay calm… he didn’t want to upset her. He’d gotten so much better over time, he could do just fine. He could let this slide.

“Fine then, you bitch. Keep walking.”

Before Akane could react, Junpei spun around on his heel, ran back over to the man speaking, and punched him across the jaw as hard as he could. The other reeled back, taking a few steps to steady himself, but Junpei didn’t let up. He grabbed onto the front of his shirt and pulled him close, staring directly into his eyes.

“What the fuck did you just say, you goddamn punk?”

“You her fuckin’ knight, or some shit? Piss off.”

“I’ll break your fucking neck, asshole.”

Before anything more could be said, he felt Akane grabbing onto his arm. He didn’t need to see her face to know what she looked like- she was definitely disappointed in him.

“Stop it, Junpei. Let’s just go.”

He nodded, but refused to let go of the man’s shirt.

“What, didn’t you hear her? She said to let go of me.” The man grinned, and it made Junpei want to do nothing more than beat the look off his face- but he couldn’t. He couldn’t. As if he could sense the bloodlust, the man stepped forwards, and whispered into Junpei’s ear. “If you want to settle this, then you’ll come to pier eighteen at midnight. It’s nice and abandoned.”

Junpei let him go, pushing him away and turning to follow Akane. He couldn’t do that, right? That was betraying Akane, and breaking their promise. She’d been helping him get used to society again, on the promise that he had his best behaviour- but, what she didn’t know couldn’t hurt her…

* * *

 

“Junpei, I really do appreciate that you care, but you can’t get into fights like that. Sometimes you just have to ignore people.”

“I know, Akane. I’m sorry.”

She hadn’t wasted any time in reprimanding him once they were back, her face gentle but stern.

“There’s a lot of people like that out there, though. Are you really sure you’re able to ignore them?”

“I am, Akane. I just… I just got mad.” His face fell, and he looked to the side. “The thought of anyone _hurting_ you, or _insulting_ you, it just…”

He hated it. Nobody was allowed to hurt Akane. _Nobody_. Even if he’d promised to get better, he knew that would never change- and he didn’t mind. If anyone so much as laid a finger on her, then Junpei would _gladly_ kill them.

“Junpei…” Akane cupped his face with her hands, drawing his eyes up towards her own. “I’m fine, ok? You don’t have to worry about me getting hurt. I can take care of myself, I promise.”

“…”

“I’m serious, Junpei. You don’t need to worry about me, ok?”

“…okay… but, I’ll always worry about you.” He looked to the side, digging a fingernail into the palm of his hand. They were always short and well trimmed, but if he dug in hard enough, he could still feel that familiar old pain… “I just can’t help it. I don’t like the idea of anything happening to you.”

“I know. And that’s why I’m always very careful.” She smiled, letting go of him and going to take a seat. “Why don’t we just relax for a bit, ok Junpei? And then I have some more work to do, so I’ll have to go.”

He nodded, silently taking a seat beside her.

* * *

 

Junpei stared at the clock on the wall, pacing about his room. This one was a different one than before- there weren’t cameras, and there wasn’t a permanent lock on the door. Akane _trusted_ him, she believed that he wouldn’t do anything wrong. Logic told him that sneaking out was indeed wrong- it was _very_ wrong- but it was what he _wanted_ to do.

Well… Akane hadn’t told him that he wasn’t allowed to go for walks at night. He was allowed to leave, if he wanted- he’d just never wanted to go anywhere without Akane before. If he just went for a walk, and _happened_ to come across that bastard from before… that wasn’t really his fault, now was it? That was just pure coincidence.

Junpei could _tell_ himself that, but he didn’t exactly believe it. He knew that Akane wouldn’t believe something like that, either- and especially not if he came back here injured. He’d just have to be careful, then. Junpei was good at being careful.

His eyes went again to the clock- there was an hour until midnight. He’d probably need the time, too. He could vaguely recall where the water was, and how to get to the docks, but he had no idea where pier eighteen would be. It could take him long enough just to find it…

Carefully, Junpei left the building without being seen, and made his way to the docks. The sky dark, and it started to rain as he walked, but he didn’t mind. It would take far more than that to really bother him, after all.

He found the bastard waiting alone, grinning to himself. He seemed surprised that Junpei had even arrived, but not disappointed.

“Huh. I didn’t actually think you’d show, figured that girl had a better leash on you.”

“Shut the fuck up.”

“Angry, huh?” The other laughed, before suddenly cutting himself off with a glare. “You gave me one hell of a bruise. I’m gonna pay you back for that.”

“Are you? It sounds like you’re all talk.”

“Why don’t we find out?”

That was all Junpei needed for provocation- he lunged for the guy, aiming a jab with his elbow into his chest. It connected, winding the man for a moment; and Junpei used that time to push him to the ground. It was easy hold him down from there, landing a few good punches; when suddenly he felt something sharp and hot and painful stab into his thigh.

“You _dumbass!_ Didn’t see this coming, did you?” Junpei screamed and backed off, clutching his bleeding leg. The other man pushed himself up, holding out a knife and _taunting_ him with it. “I’m gonna fucking kill you for what you did to me. I’m gonna slice you up in a million little pieces, so that nobody in a million years’ll be able to tell that you’re a fucking corpse. And then, I’ll kill your little bitch. So you’d better fucking run, unless you want to end up in the water.”

Staggering to his feet, Junpei let out a low growl. He could tell he was losing control, but he didn’t _care_ \- pieces of shit like this deserved to _die_. People like him were the reason that deep down, a part of Junpei didn’t regret ending the world. Yes, Akane would be very angry at him; but she didn’t have to know. She’d _never_ have to know.

He stepped towards the other man slowly, eyes never leaving the knife. His blood was dripping from it, and it calmed him- some habits never died, it would seem. It would appear that he’d started smiling, as the man was looking uncomfortable... he’d held the knife out in front of him, waving it about wildly as Junpei continued to walk towards him.

“Th-the hell? Stay back!” Junpei ignored him, and took another step forwards. “I said, stay back! What the fuck is wrong with you, can’t you hear me? Don’t get any closer!”

“I thought you said you were gonna kill me? Where’d that enthusiasm go?”

“I’ll- I’ll do it! So stay back!”

“Now, that’s not how you kill someone. Not at all.” Junpei was close enough, now. He grabbed onto the blade of the knife with one hand, and jerked it from the other man’s grip. His eyes glanced casually at the gash the knife left, examining it with mild curiosity- it wasn’t too deep, but it was bleeding _marvelously_. “If you’re going to kill someone, you have to commit to it. You can’t just say you’re gonna do it to scare them away.”

He jabbed the knife forwards without warning, feeling it catch the man’s shoulder. He screamed in pain, but Junpei ignored it. This bastard had it coming.

“ _This_ is how you act if you want to kill someone. You can’t get cold feet.” Another stab, this time catching him in the stomach and making him double over in pain. He took the opportunity to kick him in the bleeding shoulder, sending the man sprawling to the ground. “I guess you weren’t prepared to kill me after all. All talk, no action.”

“S-Stop it! Stop it, I don’t wanna die!”

Laughing, Junpei dug his heel into the man’s stomach, making sure to put pressure on the injury. He screamed in agony, but that only made him laugh harder.

“Didn’t you say you wanted to kill me? Didn’t you say you were gonna kill Kanny? Do you _honestly_ think you get to make a threat to me like that, then walk away unscathed?”

“You’re _insane!_ ”

“What else is new?” Junpei stepped back, then kicked the man hard in the stomach. “I’ve gotten much better, really. It’s not my fault that you happened to push my buttons.”

“Y-You’ll go to jail! And then your bitch won’t ever want anything to do with y-“

“You’re a _moron_. If Kanny was gonna abandon me, she would’ve done it years ago. Even _if_ she finds out about this- which she _won’t_ \- she wouldn’t hate me. She’d never hate me, because she knows that I love her.”

“That makes no fucking sense!”

“It doesn’t have to make sense to a piece of shit like you. All you need to know is that you’re about to die.”

Junpei slammed a foot down onto the man’s face, preventing him from speaking any more. The knife was grasped loosely in the non-bleeding hand, and he looked over the man’s body- how should he die? There were a lot of ways, really. It was unfortunate that he wasn’t more experienced in killing- he could remember how to end the world, but he couldn’t particularly remember how to murder someone in the most painful way possible.

How unfortunate.

“Ugh, this is too much of a bother. I’ll just kill you in a boring way.” The man was flailing his arms in an attempt to break free, but it was pointless. Almost apathetically, Junpei looked to the knife, nodded to himself, and then plunged it into the man’s heart. He pulled it out with a bit of effort, then stood back. “Goodbye. Nobody will miss you.”

It took longer than he would’ve liked for the man to stop moving, but once he did, Junpei found himself at a bit of a loss. What would he do now? Well, he’d have to dispose of the body in some way or another…. Good thing he was beside a dock. There were no plastic bags just lying around, but there _were_ a few old wooden crates. They seemed too small to fit an entire body into… but he could improvise. He was fairly certain he could at _least_ saw the arms off, and even if not, he could just break all his bones until he fit in. There were plenty of rocks and cinderblocks that’d been left lying about, after all.

Cutting through the arms was slow, bloody work. It was made a little better by the rain coming down harder and keeping his work area relatively clean, but it didn’t change just how much blood this man had inside him. Junpei almost found himself a little bit surprised, if he was honest with himself. He’d always known that _he_ could bleed plenty, just the fact was enough to calm him- but worthless trash like this could bleed like this, too?

Junpei had promised Akane that he wouldn’t hurt himself anymore. He’d promised it and he’d meant it, and he’d been making good on that promise.

However, that didn’t mean he couldn’t make _others_ bleed.

It was the perfect workaround, really. He wasn’t breaking his promise, and if he ever felt like really, _truly_ had to bleed, then he could just kill someone. The act of killing itself was far easier than he’d really imagined, although that may have been due to the sharpness of the knife.

Sure, Akane would be upset if she found out about this, but _she didn’t have to know_. Junpei knew that she trusted him. He knew that she believed him, and he knew that she’d believe him if he promised her that he wasn’t a killer. It was lying, yes… but it was for her own good! He could just kill anyone who so much as _looked_ at her wrong. Really, he was doing this to _protect_ her, from scum like the body that he’d successfully dismembered.

All of this was for Akane. All of it was for her. He’d do _anything_ for her. He could be good, he’d never have to worry about relapsing or ending the world, not when he had his perfect outlet. Akane and the world would _both_ be safe- and, he’d be destroying some worthless trash while he was at it.

All in all, it was a completely and utterly perfect idea.

* * *

 

Junpei returned back at about two in the morning, having spent quite some time fitting the body into the crate. He’d ended up having to mutilate the corpse pretty badly just to get it to fit in, but he _had_ gotten it all to fit into one. He’d then loaded it up with a couple cinderblocks, jammed the latch shut with a spare bit of wire, and pushed it into the water.

He managed to return to his room without getting noticed, slipping the knife quickly under his mattress, when Akane burst in.

“Junpei! Where have you been?!”

“I-I went for a walk, is all. I figured if I tried going out when there’s nobody around, it might be easier for me… I wanted to try going out alone.”

“And you didn’t think to _tell_ me? It’s past midnight- oh my god, Junpei, what happened? You’re bleeding!”

He’d completely forgotten about the wounds on his hand and leg, eyes widening in surprise when he realized his hand still did have a cut on it.

“Oh…”

“ _Oh?_ ” Akane sighed, grabbing him by the arm and pushing him down to a seated position on the bed. “Just give me one second, I’ll get someone to look at that.”

Junpei nodded, waiting for Akane to return. He offered his hand without resistance when the nurse on staff asked to inspect it, and didn’t argue when she looked at his leg either. He’d needed stitches, unfortunately, but it wasn’t unexpected. He was simply lucky that he hadn’t gotten any _more_ injuries…

“How did this happen, Junpei?” The second the nurse left the room, Akane was drilling him for answers. He could tell she wasn’t angry, though- she was worried, it was written plainly on her face. “Please, tell me the truth.”

“I was walking, and I… I think I tripped? I landed on some glass, but I guess I just didn’t notice that it’d cut me…”

Akane sighed, her shoulders heavy as she sat down beside him.

“Junpei, you need to pay more attention to things like this. I… I know that it doesn’t bother you, but it _worries_ me. I don’t like to see you hurt.”

“I know, Akane. I’m sorry.”

“And, I won’t make you tell me where you’re going, if you really want to go out… but if you’re going to be gone for a while, can you _please_ tell me? I thought you’d gotten lost…”

“Ok, I promise. I’m sorry for making you worry.”

Sitting down beside him, she took his good hand into one of her own, and gave it a light squeeze.

“Thank you, Junpei. Now, you should go to sleep, ok?”

“Ok.”

* * *

 

It was a few weeks later when the body was found, pulled up in an almost unrecognizable state by some unfortunate fishermen who’d probably been scarred for life. He only heard bits and pieces of the reports from the radio, but it seemed like most of the body’s flesh had been eaten off by marine life. He’d had no forms of identification on him either- only a missing person report and his ruined clothes implied that it was indeed him.

He’d been very careful not to smile when he heard about the news. The police were at a loss- the parts of the body that they’d found implied “horrific mutilation”, but the entire thing hadn’t even been found yet. Even with divers, Junpei _doubted_ that they’d ever really find it all. Most? Perhaps. But not all of it. The best part was, though, that any evidence of how he’d died had been eaten up. He was certain they’d find traces of blood at the docks sooner or later, but they’d never find anything that could lead to him. It’d been raining far too hard for anything like that to stick around, after all.

It was a few days after the news broke that Akane approached him, with a question Junpei had already seen coming.

“Junpei, did… did you have anything to do with this?”

“Of course not, Akane.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I promise.” He was lying, but the lie was acceptable. It was a lie to keep Akane _safe_ \- he was _protecting_ her. It was for her own good that she didn’t know the truth. “Whatever happened, I had nothing to do with it.”

“Okay… okay. I believe you.”

Akane pulled him into a gentle hug, which Junpei gladly reciprocated. He was certain to hide the mad grin on his face before Akane moved away, continuing to act just how she wanted him to.

He would make her happy.

* * *

 

One murder turned into two, then three, then far more. He’d stopped counting after 10- the news did that for him, after all. He hadn’t gotten hurt once since the first murder, and he’d never been seen. He _had_ started getting ‘creative’ though- if he dumped the body from the same place every time, then sooner or later they’d catch onto a pattern. So, sometimes he’d use an incinerator, others he’d bury them, and sometimes he’d go back to the tried and true water burial.

He may have been a murderer, but he wasn’t without his morals. He’d only kill people who were a threat to Akane; and even then he didn’t kill all of them. Only the ones that crossed that line, the ones that really pissed him off- _those_ were the ones who deserved to die. He liked to make sure that deaths were always quick and easy, and they always happened on nights where it was raining. Did it limit him? Perhaps, but he didn’t mind. He wasn’t _looking_ to kill people, after all. It was just… an unusual form of stress relief. Yes, that was it.

And in reality, it _had_ been good for him. He’d grown more confident in his interactions with people besides Akane, and he’d even gotten better at going out during the day. He felt like he was less argumentative as well; so becoming a killer wasn’t really a bad thing.

It had been maybe a bit more than two years since the first one, and Junpei felt _happy_. He was certain he could fit into society perfectly fine by now, he hadn’t heard a trace of ‘them’ in _ages_. Everything was good. This was the best that things could ever possibly be.

Or, perhaps not…

It was late when he walked past the security room, the door left ajar. Against his better instinct telling him Akane would be mad for eavesdropping, he did anyways- and he was quite glad that he did, considering what Sigma was saying.

“Akane, they match up. The timelines have _always_ matched up. He goes out, then a few weeks later, there’s someone on the news. There’s no other explanation.”

“That’s insane and you know it. It couldn’t _possibly_ be him.”

“Can you honestly write off that many coincidences, Akane? I could accept one or two, but not _this many_. Just face it- he’s been lying to you. He’s using you, Akane.”

“Shut up, Sigma. You’re wrong. Junpei would _never_ use me like that-“

“Are you _sure?_ He’s gotten better, yes- even I’ll admit that. But you can’t pretend what he went through never happened. It’s fully possible that he’s just so broken deep down, that no amount of _anything_ we do can ever really help him. He’s just learned how to mask anything that keeps him from looking healthy, that’s all.”

“That’s…”

“It’s fine if you don’t want to believe me. I don’t _want_ to believe that he’s a serial killer- but sometimes, you have to face facts that you don’t want to face.”

“I know. I… I know.” He could hear Akane sigh, but he didn’t _dare_ risk trying to catch a glimpse of her face. “Just… please. Give me a few days, ok? I need to think about this. I can’t just hear this and accept it all at once, you _have_ to understand that.”

“I do. And… I really am sorry that I had to bring it up like this, Akane. I wish that things weren’t like this.”

Junpei left the hallway at that, making sure that neither of them heard his footsteps as he walked away.

* * *

 

“What are you planning on doing?”

“Huh?”

Junpei blinked as Sigma walked into his room, feigning perfect innocence. Sigma only snorted, clearly not willing to play along.

“I caught you walking away on one of the screens after Akane and I had our ‘talk’, I _know_ that you were eavesdropping. I’m asking you what you’re planning on doing now.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Sigma.”

“Cut the bullshit, Junpei. Look, I’m not going to do anything without Akane’s consent. I’m just telling you that if you even _consider_ touching a single hair on her head, I won’t let you leave this room alive.”

“I would _never_ hurt Akane. Ever.” He started to glare at Sigma, feeling that familiar old hatred start to bubble up again. How could Sigma even _think_ that Junpei would hurt Akane?! He’d started killing to _help_ her! “If you’re just worried about her, then everything’s fine. Akane is fine. She’ll never get hurt.”

It wasn’t a direct admission of guilt, but Sigma seemed to take it as much- well, it wasn’t like he didn’t have good reason to…

“You’re still hurting her, you know that?”

“No, I’m not. I would never hurt her.”

“What you’re doing _is_ hurting her.”

“How could it possibly be doing that?”

“Because you’re making her doubt her faith in you. You’re making her _question_ you. You’re singlehandedly destroying her trust in you.”

“Th-that’s… no. That’s a lie. You’re lying.”

“Am I?” Sigma’s face was calm, as always. It was that look that Junpei _despised_ \- the one that always meant Sigma knew more than him, and they both knew it. “You know it too. I wonder if you actually _enjoy_ that fact.”

“Stop it.”

“Do you like thinking that you’re hurting her? Do you like knowing that your lies keep making her just a little bit more desperate to believe you?”

“ _Stop it!_ ” His hands balled into fists when he yelled, and he could no longer hide the mask of pure hatred from his face. “You shut your fucking mouth, Sigma. Right fucking now.”

“Are you going to kill me?” Junpei said nothing, only glaring some more. “As I thought. Anyways, I’ll be going now.”

As Sigma went to turn his back, Junpei’s mind started to turn furiously. He _could_ reach the knife quickly enough, and get Sigma from behind… but there was no way to take care of him from here. What could he do, then? Sigma needed to die, there was no way around it. He was ruining Akane’s image of him, so there was nothing Junpei could do other than kill Sigma.

It was inevitable.

* * *

 

Junpei waited until the next night when it was raining, waiting until Sigma left the building for the night and following after him. He followed for a while, getting more and more confused by where they were going- until they ended up on a path deep within a park, a place that Junpei had never been before.

“So? Are you going to try?”

His eyes went wide as Sigma spoke, grinding his teeth with frustration. Of _course_ Sigma would be aware- of _course_. He was so _annoyingly_ on top of things, and Junpei _hated_ it. He hated it more than anything, because he was _never_ ahead of him.

“I hate you.”

“I’m aware of that fact.”

Junpei pulled the knife from his pocket, the blade glinting off the fluorescent light that’d managed to work its way through the trees in the park. Sigma looked at it once before folding his arms, shaking his head.

The lack of a reaction… it pissed him off. Why wasn’t Sigma _doing_ something? He should be getting angry, he should be getting scared, he should be begging for his life or fighting or screaming or- or- or _anything!_

And yet, the more irritated that Junpei got, the less emotion Sigma seemed to show. It was almost as if he was _bored_ with him- eventually Junpei could take it no more, and he lunged for Sigma. The knife caught the larger man in the abdomen, but he punched Junpei in the stomach, winding him and then pushing him away before he could pull the knife back out.

Sigma winced in pain every time he moved, but his face was still _infuriatingly_ calm as he pulled out his phone. His eyes stayed on Junpei while he pulled up a number- and then he spoke.

“I was right, Akane. I’m hoping that you can lend me a hand now though, because I’ll likely be needing it.”

Blood was seeping from the wound, but the knife was keeping it from bleeding too much. Junpei eventually made it back to his feet, his breathing still shaky- he had to get the knife. He had to kill Sigma. Sigma had to die. He had to die. He had to die. He had to die had to die had to die had to die had to die had to diehadtodiehadtodiehadtodie _hadtodiehadtodiehad_ -

He’d gotten too caught up in his thoughts, but it gave Sigma enough time to start trudging away. Junpei started pursuit the second he realized, taking off at a sprint-

“Stop.”

He didn’t need to turn to know that it was Akane. Her voice was cold- too cold. Why was it so cold? Why was she talking to him like that?

“A…Akane?”

“Look at me, Junpei.”

He did as she asked, finding a gun aimed at his head. Junpei felt the blood drain from his face- what was going on? Why was Akane doing this? _Why?_

“I’m sorry, Junpei. I’m really, really sorry. I should’ve realized what was going on a long time ago, I should’ve convinced you to stop. But I didn’t.”

“Akane, I don’t understand-“

“Junpei… this isn’t what you wanted. You didn’t want to end up like this.”

“You’re not making any sense.” Junpei blinked, a panicked smile working its way onto his face. “C’mon Akane, you’re kidding around, right? I’m just fine- I’m like this because I _want_ to be. I just wanted to keep you safe. You understand that, don’t you?”

“I do.” Junpei smiled and took a step towards her, but her face grew cold. “But that’s not what I wanted. I don’t want you to keep me safe- not like this.”

That made no sense. Junpei couldn’t understand this- why was she saying this? He’d done _all_ of this for her. _All_ of it. Everything he’d done, everything he’d _ever_ done- it was _always_ for her. Why couldn’t she see that? Why couldn’t she _realize_ that? Why wasn’t Akane _loving_ him for this?! She should love him! _She should love him for this!_

“Junpei, will you… will you turn yourself in? Will you confess?”

“I… _no_. No, there’s nothing to confess to. I did nothing wrong, Akane. Those people that died _deserved_ it. They were all _trash_ \- they didn’t deserve to live. I did the world a favour by killing them.”

“…I see.” Her face grew sorrowful, but her eyes never left Junpei. “I… really am sorry, Junpei. For everything. I wish that we’d been on another timeline… one where this had never happened.”

“…Akane?”

“It’s too late for wishes, though. It’s been too late for a long time now. I… I’ll keep my promise to you. I can’t let you hurt any more people.”

“Y-You’re scaring me, Akane… what are you talking about?”

“I’m sorry, Junpei. Goodbye.”

She pulled the trigger, and time felt like it came to a stop. All his emotions- betrayal, confusion, anger, fear, despair- all of them started to overwhelm him. It was enough to make him feel like he could cry, and perhaps he might have on another timeline; but here?

The bullet hit its mark before he could say or do anything, and he crumpled to the ground.

* * *

 

“Oh, Akane… I didn’t expect to see you here.”

She smiled softly, looking to Sigma and Diana. He looked fairly comfortable for someone in a hospital bed, although that could’ve been because he had his wife to talk to. Closing the door behind her, she went to take a seat near the bed.

“I’m glad to see you’re doing better, Sigma.” She paused for a moment, then frowned. “And… I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I let you be bait for such a dangerous plan, when we knew what might happen…”

“it’s okay, Akane.”

“But still-“

“ _It’s ok_.” Sigma placed a hand on her shoulder, sighing heavily. “But, how are you? That can’t have been easy for you…”

“Junpei… that wasn’t really him. Not anymore.” Her gaze fell to the floor, hands gripping tightly onto the fabric of her pants. “He wanted me to make sure he didn’t hurt anyone. He didn’t _want_ to hurt people- he hated the idea that he could become someone like that. He would’ve wanted me to stop him.”

None of them said anything to that. They ended up sitting in silence for some time, nobody truly sure what to say- eventually visiting hours were about to end, so Akane said a quick goodbye to Sigma, leaving to give him and Diana a bit of time to themselves. She’d made it outside when she felt an arm grabbing onto her elbow, surprised to find that Diana had chased after her.

“Akane, are you really alright?”

“You really don’t need to worry about me, Diana. I…. I’ve always been prepared to do what I must. For the sake of the world, I…”

“I know that, Akane. But, you’re still a _person_. You’re allowed to have feelings.”

Looking to the side, Akane pressed her lips together in a frown. She knew that, yes- but it felt _wrong_. She felt guilty about it, because if she hadn’t had feelings in the first place… then perhaps, Junpei would still be alive. She could’ve seen what was happening a long time ago, and stopped him before it got to this.

“It’s not your fault.” Diana pulled Akane into a tight hug, gently rubbing her back. The action was enough to finally get her to cry, burying her head deep onto Diana’s shoulder. “It’s not your fault at all. You can’t blame yourself- we should’ve tried to tell you something sooner. Sigma and I both, we suspected him, but… we didn’t want to believe it either.”

“Why did this have to happen to him? Why? He was… he didn’t deserve that! He was so selfless, and then it all got so _warped_ …”

“I know… I’m sorry.” Akane couldn’t see Diana’s face, but she could hear the guilt in the older woman’s voice. “If it wasn’t for Delta, then Junpei would…”

“………”

“But, we can’t keep blaming ourselves. I don’t think he’d want that, either… he wouldn’t want a world where you kept blaming yourself and hating yourself. He loved you, he wanted you to be happy- even if it did get twisted in the end, some part of that was always genuine.”

“You…. maybe you’re right…” Akane stepped back from the hug, attempting to wipe the tears from her eyes. Even if it had been something twisted and unhealthy and horrible, he had still _cared_. Hating herself, making herself miserable- that wouldn’t make him happy. If there’d really been no other choice than to kill him, then she’d have to honour his memory the best she could. “Thanks, Diana.”

“Are you sure that you’ll be alright, though? I can drive you home, if you’d like.”

“I’ll be fine. I… feel like I still need some more time to think. I need to decide what to do next.”

“Alright. I’ll see you around then, ok?”

“Yeah, see you later.”

Waving goodbye, Akane began the walk home. It was easy to _say_ she’d be fine, easy to _say_ she should forgive herself… but actually doing so? That was near-impossible. No matter the reason, she’d still killed Junpei.

It was so _easy_ to forget everything he’d gone through, and just remember the Junpei from before. The boy from the nonary game, and the boy that she’d loved in elementary school- it was so easy to just pretend that nothing after the nonary game had ever happened, and he’d always been safe. It was the _easy_ thing to do… but she couldn’t let herself get caught up in that trap. It wasn’t fair to him.

No matter how much Akane wished that she’d been on a different timeline, this was the one that she’d lived through. Even if it was nicer to imagine that Junpei had been perfectly fine, it simply wasn’t true, and she had to face reality. She had to accept what he’d been- not just for his sake, but for her own sake as well.

It wasn’t easy. In fact, it was incredibly hard to accept the fact that because of her, the boy she’d loved had become a serial killer, and the person who’d ended the world on other timelines. It was even harder to accept the fact that because of this, she’d had to kill him. But, that was simply how things were. It was the truth of the matter, and sooner or later she’d have to acknowledge that.

She didn’t want to sacrifice her feelings again. She’d done that on the timeline where radical-6 had escaped, and she knew that it had worried everyone around her. The best outcome was a one where she could come to terms with everything and continue on with her life- but she wasn’t there yet. She needed time, and a lot of it, it it was even truly possible for her to do at all.

By the time she finally reached home, Akane had gone entirely numb. Perhaps tomorrow she’d be able to face things in full, and deal with them like she really needed to- but not now. A gentle rain had started to fall, and she found herself staring up at the sky…

…at least this time, no more people would have to die.

**Author's Note:**

> This one was the first Idea that came to me when I thought about writing post-ending fics, and I'm quite happy with how it turned out! It really wouldn't take that much to push him off the edge, considering how unstable he was- going out into public too early and not putting enough effort into dealing with his problems just meant that he never healed properly. This is the 'neutral' ending, although it's really only called that because it has less main character deaths than the 'bad' ending. In terms of overall death count though, it's probably a worse outcome... I suppose it's up to you guys whether you want to consider this or the other one a worse ending. Neither are terribly good.
> 
> Thanks again for reading!


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